Ligand Announces Highlights from Today’s Analyst Day Event

SAN DIEGO--
Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ: LGND) reviewed its
business model, growth opportunities, portfolio of partnered assets and
unpartnered development programs, as well as its 2014 to 2016 financial
outlook at an Analyst Day event held earlier today in Chicago.
Highlights of presentations by Ligand’s senior management include the
following:

Business model and growth drivers:

Ligand’s unique “Shots-on-goal” business model now includes more than
90 fully funded programs with development partners.

Recent clinical and regulatory progress by partners allows Ligand to
estimate that four new revenue-generating products could be approved
by the end of 2014.

Given industry success rate for drugs at various stages of clinical
development, the Ligand pipeline may provide the Company with up to 20
revenue-generating partnered programs by 2020.

Existing partnerships represent more than $700 million in potential
milestone payments (or nearly $35 per share) and partners are
projected to invest more than $800 million on Ligand programs in 2014,
including more than 80 clinical trials.

The acquisition of a portfolio of assets from Selexis SA earlier this
year provided licensing agreements with companies such as Merrimack
Pharmaceuticals, Baxter, Aveo Oncology and Coherus. Selexis’ asset
portfolio features promising novel biologics in development and
biosimilars for current blockbuster biologics.

Ligand has experienced a 77% increase in requests for Captisol samples
since the technology was acquired in 2011. The Captisol formulation
technology has particular ability to enable development of new drugs
and improve the profile and performance of existing drugs.

Management highlighted Promacta®’s consistent global
revenue growth over the past few years, and noted the product is
projected to continue to generate meaningful growth in royalties for
Ligand in the future based on new territory expansion, new potential
indications coming on line, and the achievement of higher royalty
tiers.

Ligand partner Merck is developing MK-8931, an oral beta-secretase
(BACE1) inhibitor, with an ongoing Phase 2/3 study in patients with
mild-to-moderate Alzheimer’s disease. MK-8931 is the first BACE1
inhibitor demonstrated to lower beta-amyloid in the cerebral spinal
fluid of people with Alzheimer’s disease.

Ligand partner Chiva Pharmaceuticals is developing two drug candidates
in China, including Pradefovir for the treatment of hepatitis B
(approved IND) and MB07133 for the treatment of liver cancer (IND
submitted). There are more than 100 million people in China with
hepatitis B and more than 40% of all cases of liver cancer are in
China.

Women’s health:

Ligand has an important research heritage with the Pfizer-owned, newly
FDA-approved drug Duavee™ for the treatment of moderate-to-severe
vasomotor symptoms associated with menopause and the prevention of
postmenopausal osteoporosis. Ligand believes this is a best-in-class
product that will compete in an established global $4 billion women's
health market.

The Analyst Day program included a feature presentation by guest
speaker Cynthia A. Stuenkel, M.D., Clinical Professor of Medicine at
the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine, on the
medical landscape and patient needs relating to the treatment of
menopausal symptoms.

Financial outlook:

Ligand’s cash expenses are expected to remain at approximately $20
million per year over the next three years, excluding any possible
increases due to any new programs acquired or licensed in that time
period.

The Company’s significant gross tax assets, including net operating
loss carry-forwards, tax credits and future tax deductions now
estimated to be in excess of $800 million, are expected to be utilized
over the next six years, potentially keeping the actual rate of taxes
paid at 2% through 2018.

Revenue and non-GAAP diluted EPS projections are as follows:

2014: Revenue in the range of $62 million to $64 million, with
adjusted diluted EPS in the range of $1.40 to $1.45.

Ligand projects a compound annual growth rate in adjusted net income
of at least 85% for the next three years.

Global product sales by partners on which Ligand is entitled to
receive royalty payments are projected to exceed $2.2 billion in 2016
and could potentially exceed $10 billion in 2020, depending on the
timing of product approvals.

A webcast of the Analyst Day presentations can be accessed at www.ligand.com
for the next 90 days.

About Ligand Pharmaceuticals

Ligand is a biopharmaceutical company focused on assembling a large
portfolio of revenue generating assets through licensing and acquisition
with the goal to generate sustainable cash-flow and profitability.
Ligand has a diverse asset portfolio addressing the unmet medical needs
of patients for a broad spectrum of diseases including thrombocytopenia,
multiple myeloma, diabetes, hepatitis, muscle wasting, dyslipidemia,
anemia and osteoporosis. Ligand’s Captisol platform technology is a
patent-protected, chemically modified cyclodextrin with a structure
designed to optimize the solubility and stability of drugs. Ligand has
established multiple alliances with the world's leading pharmaceutical
companies including GlaxoSmithKline, Onyx Pharmaceuticals (a subsidiary
of Amgen Inc.), Merck, Pfizer, Baxter International, Bristol-Myers
Squibb, Lundbeck Inc., Eli Lilly & Co. and Spectrum Pharmaceuticals.
Please visit www.captisol.com
for more information on Captisol or www.ligand.com
for more information on Ligand.

Forward-Looking Statements

This news release contains certain forward-looking statements by Ligand
that involve risks and uncertainties and reflect Ligand's judgment as of
the date of this release. These statements include those related to
expected revenue and adjusted diluted EPS for 2014, 2015 and 2016, the
expected number of shares outstanding in 2014, 2015 and 2016, the growth
of operating expenses in 2014, 2015 and 2016, sales of Captisol in 2014,
2015 and 2016, royalty and non-royalty revenue projections based on
third-party research and expected license and milestone revenue in 2014,
2015 and 2016. Ligand cannot assure that it will receive expected
royalties to support its ongoing business or that its internal or
partnered pipeline products will progress in their development, gain
marketing approval or achieve success in the market. In addition,
ongoing or future arbitration, litigation or disputes with third parties
may have a material adverse effect on Ligand. Such risks and
uncertainties, and others, could cause actual results to differ
materially from projected performance. The failure to meet expectations
with respect to any of the foregoing matters may reduce Ligand's stock
price. Additional information concerning these and other risk factors
affecting Ligand's business can be found in prior press releases
available via www.ligand.com
as well as in Ligand's public periodic filings with the Securities and
Exchange Commission at www.sec.gov.
Ligand disclaims any intent or obligation to update these
forward-looking statements beyond the date of this release. This caution
is made under the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities
Litigation Reform Act of 1995.